Down goes Howard

Posted by | May 12, 2007 at 10:24 PM

After giving Ryan Howard six days to rest his strained left quadriceps, the Phillies decided they needed to make a move. They did after Saturday's 11-7, comeback win over the Cubs, placing Howard on the DL.

The Phillies backdated the move to Thursday -- Howard last played Wednesday, when he hit his game-winning, pinch-hit grand slam in Arizona -- so he will be eligible to return to May 25. Catcher/infielder Chris Coste was recalled from Triple-A Ottawa to fill Howard's roster spot.

You can listen to Howard speak about going on the DL at the link below.

With Howard, out, lefty-hitting Greg Dobbs and righty-hitting Wes Helms figure to share time at first base. Dobbs started Saturday, collecting a career-high four hits. Expect Helms to start Sunday afternoon against left-hander Ted Lilly, with Abraham Nunez starting at third again.